Dodgers’ Justin Turner Delivers a Walk-Off Homer to Topple Cubs

LOS ANGELES — In the 60-year history of the Los Angeles Dodgers, they had celebrated just one walk-off home run in the postseason entering Sunday. It occurred way back in 1988, and it was the legendary, pinch-hit shot that Kirk Gibson hit on wounded legs to capture Game 1 of the World Series.

Now the Dodgers have two. Twenty-nine years to the day that Gibson made history, Justin Turner followed suit, smashing a three-run home run with two outs in the bottom of the ninth that broke a 1-1 tie and gave the Dodgers their second straight victory over the Chicago Cubs and a two-games-to-none lead in their National League Championship Series.

Unlike Gibson, it has taken a while for Turner, a Southern California native, to turn into a major league star, but he is one now, distinctive for his all-around play as a third baseman and for his long red hair and beard. And now he has an emphatic postseason moment to add to his résumé, one almost as good as Gibson’s, which came with the Dodgers one out from losing.

“One of my earliest baseball memories was being at my grandma’s house and watching that game and watching Gibby hit that homer,” said Turner, who will turn 33 next month. “It’s incredible.”

Turner’s home run and romp around the bases was the exclamation point on an ecstatic scene inside Dodger Stadium. The Dodgers have not reached the World Series since 1988 when, propelled by the Gibson homer, they beat the Oakland A’s in five games. Now they are halfway to finally making their return.

As for the Cubs, the defending champions, they were left, again, to brood about their bullpen, which has struggled throughout this postseason and could not get Game 2 into extra innings.

In addition, Manager Joe Maddon was left to defend his decision to let John Lackey, a lifelong starter being used as a reliever in this postseason, face the dangerous Turner. In doing so, he passed over his All-Star closer, Wade Davis, who got a tough, seven-out save in the deciding game of the Cubs’ division series against the Washington last Thursday and has not pitched since.

“I really just needed him for the save tonight,” Maddon said when asked why he did not bring in Davis to take on Turner. “He had limited pitches. It was one inning only, and in these circumstances you don’t get him up and then don’t get him in. So if we had caught the lead, he would have pitched.”

The Cubs have gotten this far in the playoffs because of good defense and starting pitching. Their hitting has been inconsistent, their bullpen worrisome.

The Dodgers, on the other hand, possessed the best bullpen in the N.L. during the regular season, and it has looked just as good this October. In a month when relievers rule, the Dodgers have yet to lose.

They got a solid start from their starter on Sunday, Rich Hill, who gave up one run in five innings. Manager Dave Roberts then marched out his relief corps for the second straight game, and, as in Game 1, not a single Cub could reach base once he did.

In all, the Dodger relievers retired 22 consecutive Cubs hitters in Games 1 and 2 until Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo was hit by a pitch from Dodgers closer Kenley Jansen with one out in the top of the ninth.

“They’re just executing pitches and they’re ready when called upon and they’re competing,” Roberts said.

With Rizzo on base, Maddon opted not to pinch-hit for the right-handed-hitting outfielder Albert Almora Jr. with any of the left-handed batters he still had on the bench. Whether that would have made any difference against the overpowering Jansen is hard to say. In any case, the Cubs didn’t score, Davis stayed in the bullpen and Lackey lost the game.

Jon Lester, a postseason stalwart, started for the Cubs, and gave up only one run, on a two-out single to Turner. But he needed 103 pitches to complete just four and two-thirds innings, at which point Maddon summoned his first reliever of the game, Carl Edwards Jr.

Edwards, like his fellow relievers, has had some rough moments this October, but he pitched well on this night, getting four straight outs. Two other Cubs relievers — Pedro Strop and Brian Duensing — followed Edwards and both pitched capably, too.

So the score remained 1-1 into the bottom of the ninth, at which point, Duensing, pitching carefully, walked the leadoff hitter, Yasiel Puig. He moved to second base on a sacrifice bunt and stayed there when Duensing struck out the pinch-hitter Kyle Farmer.

Enter Lackey. He is a 15-year major league veteran with several World Series rings but he went unused in the first round against the Washington Nationals. He had also appeared in Game 1, which meant he was now pitching on back-to-back days for the first time in his career.

“I’m just betting on his experience right there as much as anything,” Maddon said. He was also betting that Lackey would get out the next hitter, Dodgers outfielder Chris Taylor. Instead, Lackey walked him, and up came Turner.

“Once that walk occurred, all bets were off against Turner,” Maddon said. “Nobody is a really great matchup against Turner, so it just did not work out.”

Lackey’s first pitch to Turner was a ball outside. The next was a fastball down the middle that Turner lifted to straightaway center for the game-winning blast.

“He just has that pulse where he can just kind of keep his calm and stay within the strike zone,” Roberts said of Turner.

Added Puig: “An incredible night. He should go get some drinks.”

Ten months ago, Turner and Jansen sat at a news conference at Dodger Stadium and explained why they had both rejected offers from other teams to re-sign with Los Angeles.

Over the winter, Turner attended Jansen’s wedding in Curaçao. They vowed to get the Dodgers back to the N.L.C.S., where they had lost to the Cubs last October, and then help lead Los Angeles to its first title in three decades.

Now the Dodgers are getting closer, with Jansen taking care of the top of the ninth on Sunday night and Turner then following suit in the bottom half. A World Series, the first since Gibson was the star, may be beckoning.

A version of this article appears in print on , on Page D4 of the New York edition with the headline: Dodgers’ Turner Delivers Decisive Final Blow in a Battle of Bullpens. Order Reprints | Today’s Paper | Subscribe